Improvement in apparatus for extracting essential oils



dinard tetra @sind dimite.

SABEL EPEROIVAL, OF SAME PL'A'OE.

Letters'Patent No. 110,998, dated January 17, 1871.

iMPRovEMENT m-APPARATus FOR sxrRAcTlNe `i-:ssENTi/Ju. o||.s.

The Schedule referred to in ythese Letters' Patent and making part o!the same.

I, Gnonen GILMAN; Pnnoivan, of. Waterville'in the county of Kennel-Jeeand'State ot' Maine,.have.

invented certain Irnprpif'einents in Stills forExtractingandliefining'Essential Oils, of. which the following is a specification.l

Nature and Objects. of the Invention. p Myinvention relates tothe-combination of a device I call Vthe heater, with thebody otqa still,for-exl tractingi essential `oils from solids or from liquids in sucha-manner that, when used to extract the'oil'froxn a-solid, (such asherbs, &c.,) the water (orvotlrer liquid) v used to extract the oilshall pereolatethrouglr the herb, 85e., then be boiled orv exposed totheaction of' steam,'and the steam having passed olf-to the cooler,carrying with it the vapor ofthe oil, the remainder oi' the water shallbe dischargedupon'the herb to repercolate it and be reboiled orresteamed again.

When used to extract volatile oil vfrom a.liquid,'the parts are soarranged that regulated quantities of this liquid and water shall bedrawn into the'heater, there commingled andV boiled together, and thenbe discharged into the, still. 'y

In the still, after the ste-.im has passed off to the cooler, these twoliquids separate, owing to their difference in spccilic gravity, andregulated quantities of each are again cornmingled and boiled together.

l` he object of thinveution is to increase the per-- centage of the oilin the distillatc,rb y percolating andy repercolating the solid withboiling water in the still,

or by thoroughly commingliug the liquid and water `when boiled, and,moreover, in .certain cases, to diminislr the first cost of the still.

Description of the Accompanying Drawing. Figure l is a side elevation ofa still for extracting essential oils froln solids embodyingmyinvention.

' Figure l is a plan of same.

Figure 1*' is a vertical section of same through line x 9;.

Figure 2 is a vvertical section 'of modicaiion of heater, and of modeot' combining it with still.

Figure 3 is a vertical section ot" another modificatiouof heater.

Figure 4 is avertical sectionY of a .common copper still elnbodyingmyinvention: 1

Figure 5 isa vertical section of modification adapted to dist-illin'goils` from liquids.

l General Description Fig. 1, A represents a tank of anyv convenientsize,

o. g., iu shapeof an 4.imferted- 'frustunrof a conesix. tive feet indiameter-at top, and fourfeet high,

' half-inch holes.

The top is iu t-wo parts, one Vof which, being about one-seventh of thediameter, is fastened permanently in place, and has connectedpermanently with it a three-inch pipe, preferably of copper, B, leadingto cooler, not shown in drawing. v

This pipe B has around its llower month a cap of gauze or perforated'-sheet-copper tokeep leaves out.

The other part oftheqhead is removable,.and can be rendered tight bypackingwith oakum or linseedin eal luting. I

The tank A is provided with a false bottom, a., fitting loosely, andsupporte'darouml edges about three inches from bottom 'of tank. It -is`pierced wit-h many On this' 4false bottoni aislaid a disk, b, of.copper or brass-wire cloth, orof vcrycoarse strong cottoncloth.

Ou this isplaced thecharge of leaves, Sac., and ou vthe charge is placeda false top, c, pierced with many half-inch holes. It should behorizontal.

a aud c. maybe of half-inch boards. y

',lhe tank A is proi'ided with a plug, (l, for drawing oi' charge', andmay have, if desired, apressuregauge and siphon-tube, for filling withwater after 'head is fastened on.

=- 'D represents what 1 call the heater.. It is the'device in which thewater is boiled, and from which it is discharged on top of the leavesafter being' boiled.

By-lcavcs I here mean the charge in' the still, whether it consists ofleaves, powdered roots, or barks, or anysimilar solid from which'fthe.oil is being extracted.

It consists, in `this case, ot acopper tube, d ,say A three inches indiameter, containing a conical steamjet e.'

fl isA bent twice at rightangles,-and isprovided with. a flange at eachend. The centers ofthe ends are about four feet six inches from eachother.

The tube d is joined by its upper ilange` to a threeinchA onfour-inclrpipe, f, fastened permanently inside l ofttankA, above `false top c,and'by itslower ange teatl'ibe, g, two and one-halffinches to threeinches indiameter, fastened permanently into sideof-titular-Xl belowfalse bottorna. u

, The steam-jet e is connected by a pipe, h, with a steam-boiler orother source of steam at a pressure ot' say from teu pounds to squareinch upward.

It has a cock to regulate supply of steam, and should be flexible orjointed, so that thejheaterl) can be used with` more than one tank.

'lhe size of the steam-jet e depends upon'the usual pressurein theboiler,aud should be just large enough to determine a rapid current ofboiliugwat'er and steam in direction-of arrow. Any similarl devceforboiling the water in tube d and driving it through l may lie-adopted',such,'for example," as are used in steam bilge-ejectors.

To use, put in charge say seven hundred pounds of teaberry leaves, pressdown iirml y and put weights on false top c, add water enough to lill tosay one-half of Aheight ot' leaves, fasten ou head and let on steam.

The water inheater D is heated and carried mechanically up` anddischarged on false top c, its place being supplied by water whichpercolates through leaves and enters heater D through tube g. lhe wholeof the water in tank A soon becomes heated, and when it reaches theboiling point steam and water are both discharged through tube j' fromheater D.

The steam, impregnated with the vapor of the oil, passes through tube Bto cooler, and thc boiling water percolates down through the leaves,extracting theiroil, which is more soluble in hot than in cold water;enters heatervD and is' boiled again, giving oft the oil it acquired inits descent is again dischargedv on leaves and again percolates, and' soon till all oil is exhausted.

llhe plug (l is. then withdrawn, the liquor .sunered to escape, andtheheater D disconnected from ta'nk A at its anges, and connected with thetubes f and ,g of another similar tank, and usedwith this second ta kwhile the first is being cooled and recharged.

By this larrangeinent all parts ofthe charge are exposed tothe action ofboiling water, whichis necessary with som-e herbs, c. g., teaberryleaves, and moreover, beforebeing boiled or subjected. to the action ofsteam', the water` percolates through the whole of the herb, andv afterhaving been boiled it 'repercolatcs through again before being boiledagain.

Percolatlon with boiling liquids is considered thc' of extracting theactive principles`- most effective way ot' plants, and I call myinvention vt-he percolating stillj yIn those. forms of stills with whichI am familiar, some -portions of the water may be boiled over and overagain without pcrcolating the whole of the herb. The amount of steam tobe used depends upon size and nature of charge, prcssm'ein boiler, Ste.Regulate so as to obtain the greatest percentage ot`oil. N Ve may have acock in tube g, it' desired, or means """oi varying the orilices of jete, if desired, and expense is no objection.

Modifications.

'. A variety ot forms may he given to the 4hea-ter D,

Initig. 2, the heater D is placed in the tank A',

and has a rose jene', instead of a conical jet, c,`, as ink The tube d'in this lcase may be made of half-inch boa is, say .three inches or fourinohessquare inside, andwth' a board, fi, at top, to deflectwater andprevent it entering pipe B'. This is a very cheap and qnire an effectivearrangement.

Pig. 3: is another moditication ot' hotter. The water 7is boiled bycontact with a coil of one-inch lead-pipe,

c, connected by pipe IL" with a boiler supplying steam at a'pressureexceeding nine pounds to square inch. 7: is a cock to permit 'escapo ot'condensed steam from pipe or coil c".

cl is a sheet-copper case surrounding coil c, say ten inches indiameter,` and connected at top with a three-way cock, l, and at bottomwith a tour-way cock, m.

The-two tubes f" f permanently connect cockt with the tops, and thc twotub'csg-g" connect the cock m with bottoms of two tanks similar to A,tig. l, one tank being on each side..

.0 is a waste-pipe, used to draw oit liquor from either tank by properlyturning handleto cock m.

1 loess 2 The cocks l and m are arranged in drawing so as to permit theright-hand tank being used while the'leithand one may be cooling. lhecock [should belargc, to permit free passage ot' steamjand water.

Steam can be conveyed from heaterD"to cooler, as well as ii'om tank A,it` desired, by tube not shown in drawing. f

We can use the heater in an intermittent instead ot' a continuousmanner, if desired, by connectinglower part of case d with tubes f j'byan additional tube, viz: Let water into heater D, close cock an, andwhen boiled sufficiently close cock l, and thc water will be forcedalong this connecting-tube ca pipe f to tank A, then open both cocks andrefill heater, and soon. l

IWhere u'e have no supply of steam, instead of heater D, a's .in lig. 3,wc may Yusea small cheap boiler, preferably of sheeteopper and tubular,set in a stove or brickwork,holding, say, twenty to thirty gallons, andexposing, say ten square feet to rc.

The whole ot' the boiler should 'be placed below'lowwater level in tank,and need have no pump for tilling, nor try-cocks. It should have a cockin itslowestpart for emptying, and may be connected with tanks on eitherside, as in iigs. l or 3.

will be full, and the tank may be emptied by cock in should be large,and suitable precautions .taken to l prevent their being clicked.

This is-a very cheap and a very eflicient substitute for a largeandexpensive copper still. Other similar .means of heating and. boilingthe water may be adopted, such, for example, as areemployed in kitchenlanges.

LFig. 4 is a common copper still embodying my invention.

A is thc body of the still.`

B, the head.

u, the false bottom.

c, the false top. The bottom and lower part of the sides serve to boilthe water, and thus answer .the purpose of steamycoil e", in tig. 3.

The tube d corresponds to d'7 in same figure, and serves'to direct thecourse ot the "current of steam and boiling water to the top of thecharge.

The l'ieatingsurlace and t'he'tube d' together, cor- 'frespond to D",tig. 3, and in this case constitute the heater.

In use, the water is boiled by contact with the water togetherv ascendtube d', and are discharged on false top c'. The steam passes to cooler,andthe water percolatcs through charge before being boiled again.

I claim for this combination, viz., tube d with still f, au increasedpercentage of oil in distillate over the same still used withoutth'e'tubc tl', whichis the only difference between this form and thestills in common use.

I am aware of' a combination of kitchen and wasliboilers with the tuberl", substantially as in fig.4; but I am not In the common still withoutthe tube d, tions of the water may accidentally be carried lup by thesteam, and. bedischarged on the top of the charge and percolate through,but this is not the ease with -the bulkof thc water. In using the commonstillit is'considered necessary to cover the herb with water, but wheretube d is used Vless water hence greater percentage of oil. v

Fig. 5 is a modification adapted to. distilling oils from 'liquids l Thetank Am and heater D are similar to correslVhenever there is water ineither tank the boiler bottom ot' boiler. lhe pipes connect-ing it withtankheated bottom and sides, and the steam and boiling aware that `thistube d' or its equiva-` lent has ever been applied to stills foressential oils;'

some porf 1s necessary,

icharged into bottom of tank.

ponding parts in iig. 1, except that there is no false top nor bottom;but the tube g"", connecting lower part of heater D" with tank Am', hasa stop-cock, n, and also a branch-tube, o, connecting with tank Af',just above its middle. This tube o has a stop-cock, p. To use, put theliquid containing the oil, e. g., melted tnrpentne, or oil to be refinedor 'rcdistilled, and water, into the tank in suchproportions that thesurface of the heavier liquid will be below the upper cock, p, and thesurface ofthe lighter liquid above same cock. Let 'on steam and opencocks a and p to such a degree as will give best results.

The liquid and the water pass into the heater Din quantities vregulatedby stop-cocks, and are vthere `thoroughly commingled and boiled togetherby the jet of steam, and then discharged into ther tank A", from whencelsteam passes to cooler4 more richly iinpregnate'd with. oil than if thesteam had been dis- The liquids separate owing to difference in specificgravity, and the process described forms of heaters in themselves, norany form l of tank in itself, nor the combination of a heater with atank, unless the combination is soconstrncted as to be used as a stillfor essential oils.

I claim as my invention-'f The combinationof the heater-D, or itsequivalent, l

with a` still for extracting `essential oils from solids or liquids,snbstant-Llly as and for the purpose hereinbefore described. y

GEORGE GILMAN PEROVAL.

Witnesses: .i

IsAJsEL B. PERGIVAL, SUSAN J. PnRGIvAL.

